The Irish Hill Neighborhood Association depends upon you, its members, to make it effective. Be a part of all the positive developments in Irish Hill by joining or renewing your membership to the Neighborhood Association.
Membership dues are only $5 household/$20 business per calendar year (January 1st through December 31st). Per our By-Laws, you must be a member by June 30th in order to vote for the Board of Directors or sit on the Board of Directors.

Speaking of combined sewer and storm drains, Metro Parks received a MSD grant for tree planting in parks that lie within the area of the city served by combined sewers. Two of those parks were Breslin and Irish Hill Parks. Metro Parks selected, sited and planted the new trees which they will water for 3 years. As a bonus, Metro Parks will assume watering responsibility for the oaks and maple that IHNA and Brightside had planted last year.

In Breslin, we have new dogwoods, a sawtooth oak, a scarlet oak, a sugar maple, witch hazels, serviceberries and a tree lilac. In Irish Hill, we received (12) dogwoods and (3) sawtooth oaks. Thanks to MSD for recognizing the benefit of using trees to reduce stormwater runoff and thanks to Metro Parks for managing the design, installation and maintenance of our new plantings.

You probably do a lot of things to help clean up our environment. This month, we’ll tell you about some other little known environmental issues right in your neighborhood. And we’ll tell you why it is a good thing to reduce stormwater pollution.

When we say ‘stormwater,’ we just mean rain or snow. Stormwater pollution is bad news for our Beargrass Creek. It’s not only the pollutants that the stormwater picks up that are problematic, but it’s also the water itself. In Irish Hill, we have combined sewer and storm drains, so a big rain storm can overflow the system and cause sewage to be released into the creek. In the big picture, we want to do the following things.

Increase the amount of water filtering into the ground, reduce the amount of runoff and pollutants washing into our streams;

Help to improve water quality for aquatic creatures in Beargrass Creek and other local streams;

Help sustain water flow in our community’s streams during dry weather;

Reduce the chance of flooding in our community;

Help protect the banks of Beargrass Creek from the eroding effects of large volumes of water travelling at high speeds;

Reduce the necessity and cost of stormwater treatment facilities;

Provide habitat for birds, bees and butterflies;

Enhance the beauty of your property and neighborhood.

In LOVE YOUR CREEK Part II, we’ll talk about simple things that you can do to help, brought to us by Beargrass Creek Alliance,www.beargrasscreek.org

Progress Rail on Lexington Road – Cityscape Residential of Indianapolis has proposed 364 apartments for the long vacant Progress Rail property. The currently concreted 10-acre site is generally used for Headliners parking. The apartments are expected to rent for $800-$1600. Cityscape is requesting two waivers – one for exceeding the height restriction for a Traditional Neighborhood district and one to encroach on the 25-foot stream buffer. They will conduct a neighborhood meeting to present their plans. Additional documentation, such as the traffic study, will be available later in the rezoning process.

Remember the documentation is public information and you may visit Louisville Metro Planning and Design Service and ask to see the file for 1373 Lexington Road. If the project has been assigned a case number, take note of that so that you can follow the progress at the E-customer Service website. See all developments of interest and find case numbers at portal.louisvilleky.gov/codesandregs/planning-reports/projectreports.

Distillery Commons—The last remaining old whiskey warehouse at the corner of Lexington and Payne has a pending redevelopment in the works, per an article on Insider Louisville posted November 25, 2013. The brick building is slated to be reconfigured into housing, retail and a restaurant. It is potentially one of the larger historic conversion projects of 2014. As part of the effort to get federal tax credits for the project, Distillery Commons owner Ray Schuhmann submitted the building into the process to get it listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The full article can be read by going to the following website: http://insiderlouisville.com/news/2013/11/25/mbb-18/

Moby Dick’s corner of Mellwood and Spring, was razed several weeks ago. The property was purchased by Kentucky Property Investments, Inc. (Sukhjit Singh Bains) on November 15, 2013 for a purchase price $275,000. Our research suggests that a convenience store will be built there, and will be compliant with current standards and codes, but we have not been able to get more information as of press time.

The Irish Hill Neighborhood Association gratefully thanks the print sponsor of the quarterly newsletter, Sheehy. A well known marketing and advertising firm located on the edge of the neighborhood, they have generously provided the time and materials for making the print newsletter happen. To learn more about Sheehy, visit their website www.sheehy1.com

Four times a year, approximately once a quarter, the Irish Hill Neighborhood Association will coordinate a topical meeting for everyone in the Neighborhood to attend. Meeting times and location will be posted on our Facebook page and communicated through email, our website and via newsletters. Everyone is invited to these meetings, but only members in good standing can vote if there is a need.

IHNA Board of Directors Meetings:

These meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. The location does vary. The Board meetings are open to the public. If you have a topic of concern or would like to be present, please email info@irishhillneighbors.org for the location and inclusion on the agenda.

Special Meetings:

IHNA will call for special meetings that directly relate to the neighborhood as needed. Members will receive proper notification of special meetings. Non-members will receive notification only by email if you have opted-in to email notifications.

“Neighborhood Development Projects”

Please join the Irish Hill Neighborhood Association at the Girl Scouts building as representatives from Cityscape Residential of Indianapolis present their development plan to the neighborhood. Members and non-members are encouraged to attend. Plans and elevations will be on display and comments will be recorded. (See page 3 for more information.)

This Friday evening, there will be a road race affecting most of Irish Hill. There will be no parking restrictions but there will be street closings. With so many walkers and runners out, we ask that you take great precaution in the area, whether in a vehicle, cycling or on foot. If there are any folks that would be willing to assist CFF and LMPD in keeping the two center lanes clear for the racers, it would be appreciated. Please come out and watch the race. There should be some great costumes in attendance.

IMPORTANT STREET CLOSURE INFORMATION

Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s Run Like Hell 5K

Friday October 19, 2012

Street Closings at 6:45 PM -8 PM

ROUTE:Starting near Distillery Commons: the race starts at the corner of Payne Street and Lexington Road and runners run up Payne (towards Baxter) then take a right on Cooper Street, following Cooper Street to Lexington, and then makes a right onto Lexington and follows Lexington to right before 2269 Lexington Rd where runners will turn around and loop back to Payne Street, left on Payne and follows back to Distillery Commons parking lot to finish line.

The race is raising money to find a cure for this dreadful disease and CFF apologizes in advance for any inconvenience this may cause. For questions, please contact the CFF office at 502-454-8435.